New Study Proves Democrats Are from Volvo, Republicans Are from Truck

An adorable Volvo C30 and a menacing Ford F-150 face off as stand-ins for their correlative political parties., Left, courtesy of Volvo; Right, by Brett Berk.

With polarization on the rise in our political culture, it only stands that our party affiliations are starting to define where we live, what we watch on TV—and what brands and types of cars we drive. Now, a new study from automotive-research firm Strategic Vision proves that not only is this true but said divisions conform precisely to the basest political stereotypes.

Later this week, the firm will release its new study correlating the political-party affiliations of nearly 39,000 new-car buyers with the vehicles they purchased, and we got a sneak peek at the findings. Here they are:

Springing forth from their stereotype as the snobby, college-educated, Earth-loving elite, Democrats are more practical and eco-savvy in their automotive-purchase decisions, significantly outnumbering Republicans in buying smaller and more fuel-efficient cars. Dems also favor multi-function vehicles like station wagons, which are roomier, more fuel efficient, and endlessly more practical than S.U.V. or crossover models.

Republicans, meanwhile, far outnumber Democrats in every S.U.V. purchasing category (save the teensy Cute-Ute), as well as in both standard- and full-size pickup trucks—our nation’s best-selling vehicles. Republicans also have a huge lead in purchases of minivans (cue jokes about birth control). And they rather predictably take the lead in the fat-cat luxury-car category by a nearly two-to-one margin.

The big surprise, given the party’s recent proclamations against recreational enticements like porn, is the Republican embrace of that ultimate symbol of diversion: the convertible. Republicans outnumber Democrats more than three to one in the purchase of vehicles with retracting tops, a figure that we believe implies either a deeply bifurcated and unresolved inner psychological struggle or the need to accommodate big hair.

The top five most popular models, by political party, are listed below. Of single note in the area of post-partisan politics is the fact that the Volvo C30 resembles one of Laura Bush’s favorite cartoon characters.